During his trip to China, President Obama was interviewed by Southern Weekend in a very brief piece that had some trouble being distributed. An order from the Central Propaganda Department ordering websites and other media not to reproduce the piece has been circulating on Chinese blogs.

Weiquan Net reported on November 18, “News: The Central Propaganda Department Orders the Banning of President Obama’s Interview with Southern Weekend.” On November 19, this website saw the detailed order banning the republication of Southern Weekend’s interview with Obama. This is an order from a municipal propaganda department. The specific contents are below:

Order from the Central Propaganda Department News Office: All media including newspapers, other publications and websites are not permitted to reproduce Southern Weekend’s interview with U.S. President Obama.

Office instructions [hand-written note at bottom]:

Department Head Wang, please announce this order. All media must implement the instructions outlined above.

Photos of Obama at the Southern Weekend interview, including a note he wrote to Southern Weekend staff, is making the rounds of Twitter. Posted on Flickr by kirk1031:

The note reads: “To the Southern Weekly and its readers: I look forward to continuing the ties between our two countries, and congratulate you for contributing to the analysis and flow of vital policy information. An educated citizenry is the key to an effective government, and a free press contributes to that well-informed citizenry. Barack Obama”